HELP!! Dark mold inside of hollow Moso Bamboo?!!!!

all4x · #1 (**permalink**) 02-13-2009, 04:25 AM

Hi, It's been a while since I posted last because schools been kinda rough. I have a big problem though, with a dark, almost black mold, which is in blotches. It is at the bottom of the bamboo end and only because it was near the soil and before was actually resting on the dirt itself. I as wondering is this actually bad mold or is it similar to the mold that is really looks bad but is closer to a good fungi. Also what can I do to clean it other than bleach or boiling baking or is bamboo just not good with soil? I hope someone can help thanks!

Thanks,

Matt

beckdg · #2 (**permalink**) 02-13-2009, 10:34 AM

to find out for sure, you'd have to purchase a mold test kit and send out the culture to a lab... other solutions for mold would be more dangerous to any other animals than it's worth... microban is one... but it kills just like bleach and there's no way to neutralize it... white mold would not be a problem... others will debate that it is safe... i will tell you for sure that is a risky assumption when it comes to black mold... i am a technician certified in fire and water restoration and was a foreman on many mold remediation jobs... i'm trained and certified... and i can tell you for sure even seeing your mold up close there's no way to tell safe from deadly without testing... sorry... good luck!

side note... some molds can live or regenerate after ANY treatment... almost anywhere... especially the most dangerous ones... if we found something we could not physically remove on the job it got vacuumed, chemically treated and then sealed in with a mold inhibiting sealer... NOT KILLZ !!!, we used a product called i.r.q. ... you won't find it in any normal place... we had to have an account with a janitorial supply warehouse to get it.

all4x · #3 (**permalink**) 02-13-2009, 11:55 PM

wow thanks, that does help a lot even though I'll have to get it tested which I highly doubt I'll have the time or money

Maybe I could buy a kit?:s I was just at California Academy of Science and in there terrariums I saw the same moso bamboo I had in my tank in theirs. But theirs was molding worse and had some frogs in there and they didn't seem to mind. But it was in a drench of water and soggy soil. I'm curious if maybe with vivarium mold is different in a way compared to a house hold mold that is deadly?:s

beckdg · #4 (**permalink**) 02-14-2009, 10:06 AM

you can get the kits at almost any good hardware store anymore... they are usually substantially cheaper than a new piece of store bought wood... i'd leave them in til i could get to a hardware store... buy the kit, swab what you got and send it in... when you get your results decide whether to remove it... never assume with black mold... it's dangerous to your health long b4 your herps... doesn't matter where it's growing... only the original source matters... which could be anywhere as mold can spread airborne.

the $15 the kits costs is a lot less than your monthly doctor bill will be if your lungs get infected with mold due to ignorance... my customers used to think it was a joke too... our tyvek suits and face masks we used when dealing with it usually scared their skin pale... when we brought in $10,000 worth of equipment for a small bathroom they start asking questions more seriously... when we section off and quarantine that section of their house the question usually is, "so this is actually serious huh?"... my answer was usually "sir; i'm going to need you to stay out of the contaminated area until we're done... and i suggest your kids sleep somewhere else until it's safe"... then the questions usually stop and they call their insurance company or a hotel... usually only the hotel is usefull... mold is never covered anymore!

i wouldn't toss it unless i knew it was dangerous... i wouldn't keep it in my house until i got my results... the hard part here... you got it in your house... if you find it is a dangerous strain... HAVE YOUR HOUSE CHECKED BY A PRO... cause that's most likely where it came from... so like i said i would not rip it out in your case until i knew the results, but i would not find excuses related to money... i'd give up my house for a dumpster if it meant mine or my kids health, and i've lived next to a dumpster b4 and i'm dead serious!

all4x · #5 (**permalink**) 02-14-2009, 06:07 PM

Wow, thanks again. I'll check it into a place soon. I do live in a newly developed apartment complex but I bet mold is everywhere anyway so it could have probably from the walls or floors or possibly the bamboo. This bamboo came from Asia and was shipped to Texas then to me in California. I'll definitely get it checked though, thanks!

wyatt003 · #6 (**permalink**) 04-01-2009, 12:18 PM

all4x, i have the exact same problem in my viv. What has happened with the mold in your bamboo? Did you ever get it checked or did the mold spread?

all4x · #7 (**permalink**) 04-01-2009, 06:14 PM

I didn't get it checked, so no.

Don't really have the time or money right now but I did bleach it and I am thinking if I'm going to use it I'll have to coat it with some Miniwax polycrylic. (after I bleached it, I used it again and the mold came back:|) It was suggested to me from someone at Repashy.com who has done it to all his wood. I wish bamboo would get something good on instead of mold but oh well. So the guy from repashy told me to rest it in a pan and pour a thin layer of the miniwax down in the pan and rotate the bamboo log in it. I punched all the little holes out of the layers in the bamboo so my gecks can climb all the way through. So it should be pretty easy. I was going to bake the bamboo also but I figured it would crack more and once it fully cracks it pretty much breaks apart...from what I'm told...to risky. Hope that helps I'm always available.

wyatt003 · #8 (**permalink**) 04-01-2009, 08:59 PM

dang. ya i'm low on cash now as well. You say you keep geckos in the same cage? did you take it out once you saw the mold or have you left it in there?

all4x · #9 (**permalink**) 04-02-2009, 01:15 AM

Once I noticed it I took it out because it kept growing even when I didn't spray the bamboo itself. I've been through it two times now and it came back every time. Sorry if I typed geckos I only have 1 crested gecko and he's almost 1 yr old. Also the reason why I took it out asap was because I noticed an increase of mold on his food once I put it in the cage. Normally I could have his food in for more than 1 day but with the bamboo in it would mold like in 1 day. I scrubbed the walls and furniture in the cage with vinegar and that helped out a lot. I have him in a semi-natural viv right now cuz I'm modeling a new cage for him...

beckdg · #10 (**permalink**) 04-02-2009, 01:25 AM

they are well worth the price, check it out:
mold test kit - Google Product Search

and they are in the back isle of EVERY home depot i've shopped at in nj, ny, pa, ct, md, va, ms, de, etc. ... so i assume you can find them easily!

and YES i have shopped SEVERAL, if not most hd's in all these states and they were all close to the bathrooms in most cases!